Days of Wine and Roses…

Preface: I apologize if you’re in Chicago or any other sub-arctic climate…

First off…the Sawtooth Ep is out. Hopefully, if you’re reading this you’ve already heard the new EP. Obviously, it’s a bit of a shift for us, but in my view perhaps the best thing we’ve released so far. Sawtooth certainly contains a couple of the best songs we’ve ever written. If you haven’t yet purchased the EP, please do. We need to eat, etc.

Rebecca and I have just returned from a weekend ‘holiday’ in Napa Valley at the Solage resort. I like swimming under any circumstances, but in February, I admit, it feels a little decadent. Calistoga is well-known as the land of bed & breakfast among the vineyards but Solage redefines the concept and puts quite a modern spin on it. Each room comes with a couple of bikes and it is implied that guests will use them to get around both the property AND the valley. We took to the concept like lemmings and instantly fell in love with it. The restaurant, SolBar, was outrageous. A couple of our dearest friends, David & Mollie met up with us for dinner and we enjoyed the spectacular cuisine along with the Tandem Chardonnay Ritchie 2004 and Orin Swift’s Mercury Head Cabernet Sauvignon 2004, both of which are tasting amazing right now.

Right at the beginning of February, we spent a LOT of time in the pool in the shade of the virgin palm trees - the forced strains of dodgy coffee table electronica being piped through the Orwellian loudspeakers at all times as if to insist “you WILL relax!” to the all-too-pleased guests. From pool to hot tub and back again. Over and over. California was made for such sport! In fact, apart from our fickle Scottish terrier being totally unimpressed, everything was enjoyed to the fullest and we left feeling completely refreshed and rejuvenated. Good thing, too…

Right as the EP is being released, we are putting the final touches on the album. In the last few days, we have near-final versions of ‘We Wear Strings’ and ‘Sneaky Creatures’ - two of the more adventurous tracks we’ve been working on lately - in addition to a late-entry called ‘We Were Flying Kites” that may actually end up being considered for inclusion. I think we all remain convinced that we have a renewed vitality and look forward to 2008 as the best yet for Halou.

Stay tuned…